#starting a big project is spooky but I really want to and I will

[ghostieblotts]

So many projects I want to work on, so much planning to do for fun trips, so much holiday fun imminent, and not enough time

[art]

Creator Spotlight: GDBee Art (@prinnay)

Geneva Bowers is inspired by the wonders of the natural world around us, and enjoys manipulating colors to create art full of mood and feelings.

Check out our interview with Geneva below!

How did you get started with art? Did you originally have a background in art?

I’m going to say yes because that’s all I’ve known how to do. It started because I wanted to draw better horses than my sister, and it just spiraled from there. People started asking me to draw things because they saw me drawing horses. I was like, well, I can draw things that aren’t horses, and then it was just kind of all I did. 

Have you ever had an art block? If so, how did you overcome it?

I have one right now! Honestly, with time, and I also collect art books; I think I have a couple hundred. If I really want to draw something, then I just flip through those and try to steal some ideas.

Which three famous artists (dead or alive) would you invite to your dinner party?

I mean, of course Van Gogh…I’m really inspired by Impressionism and Post-Impressionism, so I would invite Van Gogh, Monet, and Julie Dillon to a dinner party.

Have you ever wanted to dive into another medium before?

Yeah, actually, I currently am! I’m trying to do more traditional painting. I used to do a lot of acrylics, but I haven’t done it in years, and now I’m kind of bad at it. I’m trying to get into actual impressionistic art with oils and oil pastels. I’m like failing, but you know, you get there. Just fail until it looks presentable. 

If there is one thing you want your audience to remember about your work, what would it be?

I guess it’s more of a feeling. I create art because I’m inspired by things around me, like certain video games. For example, I have been inspired by a Japanese RPG called Chrono Cross on PlayStation 1. They make me feel a certain type of inspiration to create something, so that’s kind of like what I’m hoping to leave behind. 

Have any of your projects surprised you with their outcome?

Yeah! I did this Weapon Faerie series where I took three prompts: a weapon, a winged insect, and an herb, which I combined to make different characters. So, a faerie with a spiked club or a butterfly faerie with a katana. I made 13 of those, and they kind of took off! I wasn’t expecting that at all.

What is the hardest part of your process?

My whole art style is coloring, like the way it’s colored… but I hate the coloring process, haha. I like doing the color combos, but I don’t like the blending and shading. That takes like one-trillion years. It’s the part where I’m most likely to give up. You know how art kind of looks ugly before it looks good? I’m trying to trust that process. 

What do you wish you knew when you started creating art that you know now?

I guess one big thing would be knowing how to use lights and darks. When I do color, it is definitely colorful, but when you switch it to black and white, you see that everything’s the same tone of gray. I’ve learned that if you just use some brighter colors and some darker shades, you create a bigger impact in the end. So, now, when I paint something digital, I make it black and white for a moment to see where all the hues are, and if something is weirdly dark or not dark enough, I can change it.

Who on Tumblr inspires you and why?

Oh, @feefal definitely inspires me. She does a lot of spooky art.

[rheiple]

Sun wants to be your favorite.

Have you noticed? From the way he greets you with a really tight hug and a little twirl, unlike how he only gives his other friends a quick pat on their shoulder and a handshake at best. The way he like to help you with work whether it’d be passing out the tools you needed, reaching stuff you can’t reach at, or even giving you the emotional support you needed when you feel like you can’t complete a task at hand. Please, he’s practically giving you the puppy eyes waiting for your praises, whenever he gives you a gift he hand made, cause he believes that putting effort like hand made crafts is much more romantic than buying it. Not that he mind buying stuff for you that is! Whatever you need, he’ll give you all, because you’re his favorite human!

And when you do give him compliments and praises? Ohh you flatter him so much! Internally squealing like a school girl who gushes about their crush, it’s so bad that he’s been nagged at by Moon. He doesn’t care though, he’s just jealous that he’s our favorite!

He doesn’t really believe it, but when you gently cup his face to admire his blue eyes, his golden rays and his pearly white smile. You told him that he’s such a pretty boy? He practically melts because of how hot his circuits are! Oh don’t look at him, you’re making him blush!

But you know what he really really likes? Whenever it’s his turn to praise and compliment you, he gets to see you overheat! Your flushed cheeks, awkward smile not being used to such statements about you, and the way your pretty eyes dart around to look anywhere but him. Oohhh he can’t wait to just eat you up! Acting all shy like that, and you’ll get a hyper Sun not letting you out of his love bombing.

He really likes you, and you seem to like him too! So is he your favorite boy? He really really hopes so !

.

.

.

Moon is your favorite.

Oh, he’s not going to sit and hope that he’s your favorite. He knows he is your favorite. I mean, you wouldn’t go out of your way to be nice and be buddy buddy with him right? He found it cute that one time you were too shy to start up a conversation with him, thinking he’s not much of a talker. He really isn’t, he prefers to listen to your voice. But if you asked him, he’d talk and talk. Wanna hear about facts of the solar system? Or hear about that one time a kid took a dookie on Sun? Oh, he’s just joking Sunny boy, he’s not that mean to embarrass you to his favorite human. Do you want to hear a story? About the spooky rabbit lady who likes to kidnap bad children? Or a love story about a human… and a robot..

Hah, he doesn’t know what your talking about Starlight. It sounds familiar? Well, yes because it’s based on a book he read. What book? Uh, he’s actually gate keeping it. Sorry Star, the book was too good for him to share it. Him? Projecting his feelings on the story?

His gonna put you in naptime for that.

Ohh but don’t think he didn’t noticed the way your eyes shined with stars whenever he lifted something heavy to help you with your duties. Like what you see? You’re practically ogling at his physique. Not that he minds, he loves your undevided attention. You get excited and hype him up whenever he does the lifting. His face plate spins in glee thinking about being your big and strong man.

He likes really teasing you, he sees your flushed cheeks and hears your heart rate speeding up little by little. He gets the sudden urge to just pinch and pull your cheeks really hard.

Oh, but you always like to take revenge. Stroking his cheeks and looking at him like he’s the million dollars you’ve won at the lottery. Telling him how he’s such a handsome man. He might’ve grumbled, but that doesn’t mean he didn’t loved it. He’s just very flustered at your compliments. No Star, I’m hiding in my hat- hey don’t take it off of me!

He knows you never get mad at him whenever he steals shiny trinkets and presents it to you. You just really love how he really really loves you. You know you’re his favorite human, his actions have shown it… So it’d make sense that he’s also your favorite, when you reciprocate his love for you right?

I got the sudden energy to write this when I listened to the song called "Pretty boy" by Naethan Apollo. The song is such a banger I would recommend it to y'all.

[vind3miat0r]

project meridian loop theory

oohhh boy, we're back with me putting on a tinfoil hat and yapping about theories again

this is, of course, about the newest Project Meridian audio, so spoilers for that!!

(putting everything under the cut because theres a LOT)

JESUS CHRIST. okay. thats a lot. lots to unpack here mhm yep.

okay guys hear me out: Asset is stuck in a time or a simulation loop

bear with me im about to get REALLY nerdy with this BUT

Star Trek: The Next Generation, Season 5 Episode 18 — "Cause and Effect" is a time loop episode. the entire crew gets caught in a time loop for about 27 days (but they obviously dont realize this until theyre out of the loop) the loop always begins with Captain Picard's personal log, and always ends with the accidental destruction of the Enterprise brought on by their warp core exploding due to being damaged while attempting to get away from an incoming ship that lost control of its direction

throughout the episode, each time the loop resets, the crew experiences intense deja vu, brought on by the fact that theyre reliving the same day over and over. theyre able to predict small events that happen (what cards come next in a poker game, Beverly predicting Geordi coming into Sick Bay, etc)

AND in one iteration of the loop, the crew figures out that theyre IN a time loop, and devise a method to avoid getting hit by the previously mentioned ship, which would set off the chain reaction of the warp core exploding

they do this method by using big brain science time knowledge that im too tired to understand, but basically the motif of the number 3 starts showing up in the next loop reset, and when the Enterprise is once again faced with only two choices to get away from the incoming ship, Data realizes that the reoccurring 3s are connected to Commander Riker (who has three pips to signify his rank)

(for context, in every loop where the Enterprise gets destroyed, the Captain followed Data's plan of using the tractor beam to steer the incoming ship away from the Enterprise. Riker's plan was to depressurize the cargo bays) Data follows through with Riker's plan, and this time the Enterprise doesnt explode (yippee!!)

you might be thinking, "Vinn, you just explained the entire episode to us. what does that have to do with project meridian??"

well, using instances from "Cause and Effect," we can compare them to some instances that just happened in "Something's Wrong"

— the second phone call could be an outside attempt to break Asset from the time/simulation loop

— Asset knowing who the Solitaires are despite not having access to information on them could be from another loop where James told them who the Solitaires are, and Asset remembering

— the phone at the end could signify the end/restart of the loop

— Asset's uneasiness about the Meridian in the beginning of the audio and their want to "seek approval" before entering it ( could be brought on by them somewhat remembering whats happened in previous loops)

— the first phone call (the one James picks up), theres some spooky ooky ambience in the background (could be that the phone is a conduit to the "real" timeline/world and only Asset is able to pick up on that??)

— when Asset and James leave the first room and enter a new area, someone on the PA makes an announcement for the Deltas. this announcement glitches, but James doesnt seem to notice, as he continues talking (i cant quite make it out, but it almost sounds like someone else is saying something?) (again, it could be interference from outside of the loop attempting to reach Asset)

— when stepping out of the elevator, someone brings James "the latest simulation report." again, outside interference/echoes from a previous loop perhaps trying to signal to Asset that theyre stuck in a simulation

— phone at the end also as someone saying "pick up" or "wake up," didnt realize until someone pointed it out. its very faint, but its there (again, could be someone attempting to break Asset out of the loop)

one thing that i find interesting (thats not related to the loop theory) is that James says the force in the Meridian "diverts demons away" and "breaks human minds" when usually demons are allowed through the Meridian and humans just. die. then again, we have no idea when PM takes place, so it could be normal if this is like,,, a good number of years in the future

uhh hashtag yeah. im perfectly sane guys :3

[the-californicationist]

Cali's Kinktober: Day 08

Kinktober Masterlist ad vitam aeternam - "to eternal life" Johnny "Soap" MacTavish/141 x gn!reader Kinks > mind control, vampires, blood-sucking Full tags on AO3 - MDNI - Read at your own risk.

The 141 vampire coven is terrorizing tiny villages in Northumberland, but you work nights and you really need this job. When a cute guy named Johnny offers to walk you home, you feel grateful for the free security. Unfortunately, you start feeling drowsy and confused. Where do you live, again? “It’s okay, bonnie. I’ll make sure you get there safe and sound.” 

No specific body traits or genitalia are mentioned. Gender neutral pronouns used. The only gendered nicknames are when Soap refers to the reader as "bonnie" or "hen" but no use of "lass" or "girl".

This work trip had definitely taken a turn. You’d expected to be at the north edge of England for about three weeks, but it was going on three months for this project with no end in sight. You were staying close to Northumberland National Park, helping map an updated migratory route for the bat colony that roosted on The Sill of Hadrian’s Wall. However, as animals often do, the bats made their own schedule for when they wanted to appear, and you hadn’t collected nearly enough data to feed to the tracker model. 

But, you weren’t complaining too loudly. Your cottage was located in a barely-there village called Elishaw, and it was as romantic as it could be. The only problem was that, after the evening sun set and the bats had all returned to their roosts, the closest place to get a pint was a three kilometer hike on a two lane road with no lights, signs, or footpaths. 

In the daytime, the view of the area was lovely. Rolling hills, black forests, and green sheep-dotted fields stretched out before you as far as the eye could see. Everyone who drove past you would wave, and you would wave back. It was lovely… when the sun was shining. But, now, as winter chased away the warmth of autumn, it brought grey clouds and a constantly setting sun, making the nights frigid and windy.

It was spooky the first time you’d gone at night, but now that you’d ripped off the proverbial bandage, the second time was no big deal. At this point, you’d been down to the Redesdale pub dozens of times, and you often walked alone, in the middle of the night, bundled up like an arctic explorer, drunker than you’d ever been.  

Tonight was one of those nights. 

“Are ye sure ye’ll be alright by yersel’, hen?” Thomas, the barkeep worried over you in his semi-local Berwickian accent.

“Yeah, Tom,” you smiled up at him, “I only had two pints. Don’t worry about me. I’ll be home before I know it.”

“There’s been talk of wild dogs takin’ to eatin’ the Kilpatrick’s sheep, Tom. ‘S not safe for a visitor to go alone, ye ken?” A man’s voice, Scottish instead of Northumbrian, piped up from the back of the bar. 

You hadn’t even realized there were other people with you and Tom. But, the grizzled barkeep smiled knowingly, 

“Ah, Johnny. Take ‘em back with ye, lad. Make sure ye get home safe and sound. I’ll worry the night away if ye dinnae go together.”

“No trouble, Tom. Headed that way, besides. C’mon, bonnie. Tha’s us, then,” Johnny paid for your tab and wrapped his arm around your shoulder, leading you out of the pub with a speed and ease that should have been alarming. 

But, you had to admit, it was nice to have an escort on your scary road for a change. 

Except… this wasn’t your road.

“Hey, I thought that was the way back there?” You pointed through the trees at the path you usually took, the one that was wide open and clearly visible, not the path through the dark forest.  

“Dinnae fash, yourself, bonnie. It’s a wee shortcut,” Johnny assured you. 

His smile was so easy to believe. The light that shone in his bright blue eyes was intoxicating, and his body was statuesque. He told you all about himself - the town he was from, where he went to school, how he was a sergeant in the RAF. It was fascinating. So thrilling, in fact, you came to your senses about thirty minutes into your trip, knowing you should be seeing landmarks, and yet you were even deeper in the woods than you’d been when you started. 

“You feelin’ alright, hen? Lookin’ a little puggled. Think you’ll make the trip, though. Just a bit further.”

“Where… um, where are… you… taking me?” Your words slurred together, and you felt like you were trapped between being awake and being asleep, knowing you couldn’t have drank enough to make you muddle your speech.

“Gonnae stop by my place for a moment,” Johnny pointed to a blackstone cairn that sat on the side of a hill, “Should only be a wee minute. Do ya wanna come in with me?”

When he asked you the last question, he made a point to make you meet his gaze, and when you did, his eyes invaded your mind. You felt as if you couldn’t look away, and the only word that could come out of your mouth was a yes. 

You didn’t want to go inside that creepy fucking cairn. There was no way this was actually his house. But, you followed him, your body putting one foot in front of the other without needing for your mind to be on board with the plan. 

“You ken,” he talked to you as he held your hand, “Tomorrow’s Samhain. Gonnae celebrate with a wee bonfire, maybe a few more drinks. Want me to tell my mates to set the table for one more?”

Again, your brain blanked out when you replied to him. Had you said yes again? What was happening to you?

Finally, you made it to the mouth of the cairn, and a crude wooden door blocked your entrance. Johnny pulled it open and held it for you, waving his hand in a ladies-first sort of sweep. You couldn’t help but obey. So, you walked into the dark stone hut, discovering that the inside was filled with flaming logs in a round well in the center and rows of lit candles surrounding the space. 

“Hey!” Johnny called out into the crude building, “We’ve got company, lads.”

Too quickly, three other men appeared in the room. You wanted to say that they walked or that they ran, but they didn’t. You could lie to yourself about that later, but you knew they had just suddenly fucking spawned there. Your body, however, failed to react in shock like you wanted to. 

They were gorgeous; just as handsome and well-muscled as Johnny, but their eyes seemed less kind. There was something predatory about their faces, especially the one with the beard. He seemed cold in a way that was beyond cruelty. It made you shiver more than the cold wind ever could. 

“Well done, Johnny,” the bearded one spoke, reaching out to stroke your cheek, “Such a pretty thing, hm?” 

You wanted to pull your face away from his touch, but your will was muted, your desire gone, and your sense of self-preservation completely absent from your mind. The only thing you could still do, it seemed, was speak to them. But, even then, it was hard to form the words. 

“Johnny asked me to come for dinner. I hope that I’m not intruding,” you went for politeness over screaming your bloody head off. No one would hear you all the way out here anyway. Maybe if you were nice to them, they’d let you leave.

“Not at all, love,” the bearded one said again, taking your coat from your shoulders and tossing it down on a chair. 

You felt Johnny’s lips begin to trail their way up your neck as he stood behind you. He was kissing you with a hot passion, his teeth dragging across your smooth flesh. Then, his hands reached around to grope your chest, fondling your nipples under your shirt, pinching them in his hands cruelly.

“How could you intrude?” The tall, Black man replied, his teeth straight and sharp and gleaming in the low light of the room, “Guests are always welcome here, especially when they smell as delicious as you do.” 

“Besides,” his gigantic, blond friend responded, “You’re not here for dinner, love. You are dinner.”

As you saw the fangs drop into the hollow of the blond’s mouth, you felt Johnny’s set on your neck. He bit down into you and began to suck from you, taking gulps of your hot, crimson blood down his throat. It felt orgasmic, but there was something so very wrong about it, too. A dying part of you was yelling at you to run, but that voice was muted by the urgency of your pleasure.

Then, panic welled up in your chest. Who were these men? How did you get here? You needed your phone, something, anything to call the emergency line and get the cops over here. 

Yet, you were motionless. Your brain felt like it had finally been washed away to a blank, empty slate. It was painful to be drained from your neck and wrists and, now, from your chest as the immense blond lifted your shirt to suckle from your flesh, biting into your nipple with his two, long fangs, and draining your life from you. But, you let him. You let all of them feed and fondle you. You were in their thrall, and there was no escape.

You felt tears roll down your cheeks as you realized you weren’t going home again. You were prey to a coven of vampires, and you’d be lucky if they just killed you quickly rather than prolonged your life. 

Johnny shoved his hand down the front of your pants and began to play with your sex, moaning when he found its warmth. He pulled his mouth away from his meal for a moment and asked a question to the man with the beard.

“Can we keep this one, sir? Tastes too damn good.”  

“Aye, Johnny,” his leader told him, lifting your chin with his thick finger, “The ritual’s tomorrow, and I know you’ve been a good lad. So, just this once, we can keep ‘em.”

[captainsophiestark]

Epiphany

Javi Rivera x Reader

Masterlist - Join My Taglist!

Written for Fictober 2024!

Fandom: Twisters

Day Two Prompt: "It's been a long time."

Summary: Javi's job bring him back into the same town as a sort-of-ex, but if he wants a chance at rekindling anything, he's going to have to answer for his decision to work for Riggs.

Word Count: 3,189

Category: Angst, Fluff

A/N: Happy spooky season everyone!

Putting work into an AI program without permission is illegal. You do not have my permission. Do not do it.

I grinned as I lined up my shot on the dartboard ahead of me, ignoring the heckling of my friends and a few new competitors we'd met at the bar. I was the undefeated champ at darts, both tonight and in general, and I hadn't gotten here by letting people get in my head.

I let out a breath, completely focused on the center ring, and sent the dart flying in one smooth motion.

Bullseye. As planned.

I turned to my friends with a grin, enjoying their chorus of groans. While I wasn't completely undefeated for all time, I was undefeated tonight, and I was frankly having the time of my life.

"Okay, there's got to be somebody in this bar who can beat you," teased one of my friends, throwing an arm over my shoulder and turning to scan the rest of the patrons who hadn't been roped into our competition yet.

"I bet I could give it a shot."

I turned at the sound of the voice to see a man I hadn't seen in years.

Javi Rivera and I had met while we were both studying at Muskogee State College almost six years ago. We'd hit it off, going quickly from friends to dating, and after only a couple months, I'd started to be able to see a future with him. And then, three of his friends died in a tornado while they were trying to test their PhD project and secure grant funding.

I'd done my best to be there for Javi, but we'd pretty quickly realized he needed some space--from chasing, from school, from Oklahoma. From everything. Including me.

It sucked to say goodbye to someone I loved, but at the same time, I got it. We'd parted on pretty good terms, deciding for both our hearts it would be best for the break to be clean. I'd thought about him a thousand times since then, clean break or no, but I hadn't seen him once. Now, he was standing before me in the dive bar just outside my hometown, apparently challenging me to darts.

"...Javi?" I managed, a smile tugging at my face despite the shock and disbelief. He grinned back at me, holding his arms out but not making any move to close the distance.

"Hey. It's good to see you."

I grinned, quickly closing the rest of the space between us to wrap Javi in a hug.

"It's good to see you too! What are you doing here? ...How are you doing?"

He stepped back with a smaller smile on his own face, running a hand through his hair before he met my eyes again.

"Better. A lot better than the last time you saw me, actually. I'm working with a team that's researching tornados, trying to get better data to better understand them and hopefully make everybody safer as a result. My team's just passing through the area on our way to chase a some big cells developing further West, and we're staying in town for the night. I was really hoping I'd find you here."

"You know, I do have a phone. And I haven't changed my number."

He grinned. "That was going to be Plan C, if Plan A of finding you here and Plan B of finding you at another bar didn't work out."

I just shook my head and laughed.

"You know, there's a lot I could say about that, but I think instead I'm gonna settle for kicking your ass in darts."

"Oh, bring it on. I was watching you, I think you've lost your edge since the last time I saw you. And I can tell you right now, I haven't. I've only gotten better."

"Sure you have, Rivera. Come on, put your money where your mouth is. You start us off."

"If you insist."

Javi leaned in close, hitting me with a charming smile as he took his half of the darts out of my hand, taking his time and letting his fingers linger over mine. For a split second, it was like I was back in grad school again, spending weekends blowing off steam and occasionally working on our project from the back table of a bar. Then, he pulled back, turning his attention to the dartboard again.

"Loser buys drinks," he called as he drew his arm back, then let the dart fly. He hit an 18, but not on any of the score-multiplying rings. I grinned.

"You're on."

****************

Javi and I spent most of the rest of the night together, trading blows in darts and just catching up with each other again. To my delight, it had been like no time had passed since we'd last seen each other. We immediately fell back into the same happy, comfortable routine we'd had for years, and my heart did a happy little flip in my chest every time Javi leaned into me with the smile I loved so much.

We stayed out at the bar together long after my friends had left, hovering at a back table together until they kicked us out. Javi had walked to the bar from his hotel, so I gave him a ride back, the two of us lingering as clearly neither of us wanted to leave. When Javi finally hopped out of the car, it was only after we'd made plans to get together the next day, depending on the tornado situation.

Luckily for Javi and I, the forecast the following morning looked very calm. Javi texted me early, and we made plans to get together for lunch. I was practically walking on air as I drove into town, parking and hopping out to wait for Javi before heading inside. I didn't want to get too far ahead of myself, but having Javi back in my life even for these twelve hours or so had been amazing. I couldn't stop thinking about him, and frankly, I didn't want to.

Unfortunately, my happy little bubble got momentarily popped by a Storm Par truck pulling into the lot. I frowned and narrowed my eyes. They'd shown up in the area recently, swooping in like vultures and taking advantage of tragedy in the community to make a profit. If they were heading into the restaurant for lunch, Javi and I might need to find somewhere more peaceful to hang out.

I glowered at the truck, trying to project as much malice and disapproval as possible. Then the door popped open, and my heart stopped in my chest.

Javi climbed out of the driver's seat. He had on a Storm Par button down. He grinned and waved at me as soon as he saw me, but I couldn't do more than stare back. What the fuck was he doing?

"Hey! Sorry I'm a little late, I had a meeting this morning-"

"With Riggs?"

The words slipped out before I could stop them. Javi stuttered a step, the smile on his face dimming a little as I crossed my arms. He came to a stop in front of me.

"I... what?"

"I think that's my line, Javi. What the hell are you doing? Why are you showing up here in Storm Par shit?"

"I told you I was chasing again-"

"You told me you were here researching tornados! Not conning grieving people out of their family homes!"

Javi took a step back, blinking like I'd physically slapped him across the face. I huffed, trying to get a hold of myself. I'd been almost shouting by the end of my speech, and I really didn't want to throw a scene in front of the restaurant.

"Listen, I get why you're mad," Javi started, holding up his hands like a peace offering. "But Riggs is funding research that's going to allow us to better understand how, why, and when tornados form, which will save lives. We're on our way to the most complete understanding of a tornado ever, and we never would've gotten here without Riggs investing and getting us this tech."

I'd started shaking my head after the second sentence, getting faster and faster until Javi finished speaking. I huffed a disbelieving laugh and took a half-step back towards my car.

"There are other ways to get grant money, Javi. Ways that don't include Riggs."

"Yeah, just ways that include risking everything going into an EF5 that got almost all of my best friends killed."

I closed my eyes and took a few deep breaths. It had been a dream come true when Javi walked into the bar last night, but this was quickly turning into a nightmare. Hurt, anger, saddness, and disappointment formed their own little tornado in my chest, and I barely managed to keep my voice level as I met Javi's eyes again.

"I know what you went through when you lost your friends. I understand why you're making the choices you're making. But you know as well as I do that Riggs is taking advantage of people, actively hurting people in this community, and that all the data you bring him with your research is just going to make it easier for him to swoop in looking to make a profit after disasters, not bringing help before them."

"That's not what we're doing-"

"You might be able to convince yourself of that while you're riding around in your stupid trucks, but unlike you, I was born and raised here, and I never left. I know what's happening, I know the reputation your sponsor has earned for you, and frankly Javi? I want nothing to do with it. Any of it."

Javi huffed in surprise, then scowled.

"I take it to mean that includes me?"

I nodded, slowly at first, then faster and more confidently as I took a few more steps back.

"As long as you're going to keep enabling the vultures? Yeah, that does include you."

He huffed again, a humorless laugh, as he shook his head and shuffled around like he couldn't figure out how to react. It felt like a knife to my heart, but I didn't let myself hesitate before turning around and heading back to my car. I'd sat and cried with neighbors in the wake of tornados, trying to salvage anything we could in the wreckage, before polished looking guys in suits came in and way underpaid for properties, then left without lifting a finger to help a single living thing in the devastated area. If Javi was willing to be a part of that, then he was nothing like the man I'd known and loved before.

****************

I sighed, dropping an armful of books on the kitchen table. I still had a few things to bring up from the storm shelter, but I couldn't stop myself from sinking into the nearest chair. It had been a long few days.

Less than 48 hours after Javi and I had our fight, one of the worst tornados of the year had touched down much too close for comfort. It had done some significant damage to the next town over, although not nearly as bad as it could've been. Exactly what had happened was still a little unclear, but it had been a long time since one had come that close to me. I hadn't been expecting it to affect me, but my knees were actually feeling a little weak.

I took a few moment to focus on breathing deeply, then rallied myself to move the last of my supplies out of the storm shelter. I'd just made it to my feet again when a knock came at the door.

I sighed and honestly debated pretending I wasn't home. But, most likely, it was a neighbor coming to check in or share news from the tornado. I didn't want them to worry, and I probably wouldn't get away with pretending not to be here.

I made it to the door just after another knock came, slightly louder this time. I swung open the door without looking outside first, then froze halfway through the motion when I found Javi staring at me, standing on my doorstep with a six pack of beer held loosely in one hand.

"Thank god you answered. Listen, I'm sorry. You were right. Kate was right. Storm Par... Riggs..." he shook his head, apparently at a loss for words. His hair and clothes were a mess, back to the Javi I'd known in grad school instead of the perfectly-pressed Storm Par rep I'd seen a few days ago. More than just that, though, he looked frazzled. Offbalance, in a way I'd never seen before.

"Javi... are you okay?"

He ran a hand through his hair and shook his head.

"Did you hear about the big one?"

"...The tornado that just hit?" He nodded. "Yeah. I've only heard bits and pieces outside of the siren, but yeah. What happened? Is everybody... you said Kate's name earlier."

He quickly reassured me, getting halfway through reaching for my hand before pulling himself back.

"Kate's fine. I convinced her to come out here and help with research, but she almost-" Javi stopped short, closing his eyes for a long, long moment. I frowned, briefly considering what to do next, but it didn't take me long to reach a decision. Javi seemed to be implying he'd ditched Storm Par, but even if he hadn't, I still cared about him. And he clearly needed somebody right now.

"Javi. Why don't you come inside and sit down? Take a breath for a minute?"

He nodded, opening his eyes again and taking a slow, deep breath.

"Thanks."

"Sure thing."

I held the door open, and Javi didn't need me to show him where to go. We'd spent a good part of our relationship hanging out in this house, and it hadn't changed much since then. I followed Javi, letting him decide where he wanted to settle. Eventually, we ended up on the back porch, Javi settling into the bench swing where we'd watched more sunsets than I could count. He set the six pack down by his feet, and after a moment's consideration, I sat down next to him.

Javi didn't look at me as I joined him, his stare still a thousand yards out on the sun that had just started to approach the horizon. I gave him a few moments, then gently reached out to take his hand. His attention immediately snapped to me, his eyes wide with surprise. I gave him a soft smile.

"How long as it been since we spent an evening sitting out here?"

He huffed a laugh. "It's been a long time."

We shared a little smile, then after a moment, I sighed. Javi seemed calmer, at least slightly, and now I needed some answers.

"So... you wanna tell me what brought you here?"

"I came to apologize. You were right about Riggs, and about what's important. I want to be helping people, and it's a long story, but it became clear in the last few hours that I can't do that as long as I'm working with Riggs. I just wish I'd been able to figure it out earlier."

Javi shifted, taking my hand in his and shuffling a little closer to me. The apology was sweet, and I'd missed having moments like this with Javi, but his answer still had a lot of holes.

"I'm glad to hear you're done with Riggs- I mean, I'm assuming that's what you're saying?"

"Yes. Very much yes."

I smiled. "Okay. But maybe you should start a little further back on explaining what happened between now and the last time I saw you. Starting with why you failed to tell me Kate was in town."

"...In my defense, I was planning to tell you at lunch."

I couldn't hold back a snort.

"Fine. Depending on how good the rest of your explanation is, you get a pass on that."

Javi laughed. "Good. Alright, let me think about this..."

It took a while, but eventually Javi managed to walk me through his whole story. It was the serious catchup we'd been planning to have over lunch, but with the added beneift of a private moment together in one of our old favorite places. A lot had happened since Kate had come to town, and she'd had the same kind of fight with Javi as I had, but he'd come around and stepped up when it mattered.

"So, now we're done with Riggs. We're working on a pitch for investors back East right now, actually. Kate's going to present what we've got so far, and hopefully we'll have ethical funding for helping people and nothing else by the end of next month."

I smiled, leaning into Javi. The sky was red from the sunset now, and we'd been holding hands the whole time. Even though we'd gone years without really talking, right now, it felt like nothing had changed.

"I'm glad to hear it, Javi. And I'm so, so glad you're okay."

"Yeah, me too. It was dicey there for a minute, but we're on the other side now."

I leaned a little further into Javi, and after a moment, he raised one arm and stretched it around my shoulders. I sighed.

"You know..." Javi started. He paused and cleared his throat, then shifted a little on the bench before continuing. "Kate and I could actually use some help working on those grant proposals, and maybe some of our future presentations. I know you've always been happy to do your own thing, but... we'd love to have your help if you want to come back to spending more time with us. I would love that."

I leaned back to look Javi in the eye, and I couldn't keep a gigantic smile off my face for even a second.

"Honestly Javi? I would love that. Both to be part of helping you guys finish what you started, helping our community, and... for you. I missed you a lot."

"I missed you too. So much. And I know I'm the one who left, but if you'd be willing to give us another shot... I'll be around for the long haul."

 My heart did a backflip in my chest, and the beaming smile on my face mirrored the feeling.

"I would really love that Javi."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah."

"Okay, good." He smiled back at me, then started leaning in before stopping short. "Can I kiss you?"

"Absolutely you can."

He grinned, then the two of us closed the distance as one, Javi's hand going to my waist as I tangled one in his hair. It felt right, and we both smiled into the kiss.

"No pressure if this is a little fast," I said, pulling back from Javi just enough to speak, "but... would you like to stay the night tonight?"

"You know I've stayed the night before, right? Regularly. I don't know if it can count as too fast if we've already done it a million times."

"Fair point. So what do you say?"

"I'd love to." He leaned in, placing a gentle kiss on my neck and then moving slowly up towards my ear. One of his hands moved to my thigh as he whispered: "I've got a lot to catch you up on if you're going to start writing grant proposals for us. I think we've got an all-nighter coming on."

I laughed, pulling back and swatting at Javi's arm. He just grinned.

"Okay, I'm officially banning work talk until tomorrow morning."

"Honestly, you don't have to tell me twice."

****************

Everything Taglist: @rosecentury @kmc1989 @space-helen

Twisters Taglist: @turtlee-says-rawr

[ghcstao3]

I saw your tags, you have challenged me!

Scary Show AU (cw for cannibalism and murder)

Ghost is a very well-known yet still semi-anonymous Voice Actor for spooky shit. There's a huge following for him because, regardless of what role he's playing, he does a phenomenal job. He's only listed in the cast list as "S.R.Ghost"

Typically he plays the role of the creatures in this super popular show called "Cryptid Season" which follows a gang of college kids desperate for extra credit in their Biology class so they hunt cryptids as evidence/to study for their papers. He does the voice over and some of the motion capture (he's a big dude) for the monsters and such, his most famous one being "Goatman" (from the demonic Goatman's bridge in I think Texas?)

Meanwhile Soap is this animator who's starting to become really popular, and he announces a new show in the work: "Consume", where he voices one of the two lead roles. It's presented as a show about a normal, if not very lonely man, being tormented by a demonic presence in his home.

Plot twist: dude's actually a cannibalistic serial killer and ends up quickly befriending the demon. The demon helps make the man harder to track by police forces in exchange for the bones and souls of his victims.

Cast:

Soap as the killer

Ghost as the demonic entity

Gaz as a detective who's new to the case but also best friends with Soap's character

Price voices the seasoned detective who's been working this case "too damn long"

Ghost and Soap ABSOLUTELY fall in love while recording scenes together. The banter, the flirting, the sexy scenario of cutting up a corpse together; it's too much not to fall in love irl

(actually such a big brain idea but I don't know how you'd write it tbh lmao. Maybe the show itself, where the boys keep their names? Idk the original idea turned into something much greater)

took a minute to figure something out i'm ngl but i did. something (in any case i would love to see your proper takes(s) if you'd be up to it, seeing as it's your idea!! i feel like i couldn’t do it justice)

-

Just like any other actor, Ghost had to audition for the role.

His agent books it for him without consultation, knowing the project would be right up his alley—horror, monsters, no face required—and Ghost makes no argument in sending in his tape. He recognizes this process and takes no issue with it, and once out of his hands, he waits patiently for a congratulatory offer or a gentle rejection.

Just like any other movie, or show, or what have you. Consume is no different.

Supposedly. At first.

John "Soap" MacTavish is... many things. He's charming, according to most. Talented. A joy to be around. A man who wears more than several hats of a project, which certainly tells of someone trying to worm their way into the commercial industry.

He has the spirit and creativity, Ghost will allow him that. But he also doesn't know when to stop talking as soon as the important work is done.

Is Soap professional? Sure. Does Soap make sure all jobs are done with efficiency and done well? Yes, he does. Does it make him any less of a nuisance to Ghost? Absolutely not.

But Ghost would be damned if the project doesn’t find its way into his soft spots, despite its nature. He’d be damned if he doesn’t fall in love with Soap’s animations and the hard work and craft he puts into them.

Then he blinks, and the pilot is premiering. It does well (again, considering its content), and Consume is properly green-lit.

Which is when Soap proposes the idea of recording their lines in the same room. Together. Facing one another. Because banter, and chemistry, and whatever other reasons he insists upon.

Personally, Ghost wants to decline. He’s always felt somewhat awkward when recording as such with anyone, but professionally? He couldn’t really say no, could he?

And it is awkward, at first. There’s more takes than usual, and Ghost can sense Soap’s frustration, though the man never expresses it. He just plasters on a tight smile, calls for a break, and pulls Ghost aside.

Surely, surely this is where Ghost gets fired. This is where Ghost is told he’s going to be replaced, where he’s told to say goodbye to Gaz and Price and wish them luck, and move onto his next gig. This is where—

“Have I done something wrong?”

Soap’s face is so earnest. So painfully sincere.

Ghost clenches his jaw. Shakes his head.

“No, I—“ He sighs. “Just have to get used to the… face-to-face. Let’s—I’ll try again.”

Soap smiles wider, now, as he nods, something kind and warm and brilliant.

The second try goes much smoother. Ghost takes a deep breath and eases himself into scripted dialogue, into witty banter and subtle flirts like it’s any other project.

They continue to record lines as such, just the two of them, each episode at a time. At some point, Ghost worries, the line between script and show and reality gets blurred. At some point, he fears, that flirting becomes genuine.

And what would he know—the reviews only get better as that line becomes less and less clear. Natural, real-feeling dialogue, critics say. The relationship is authentic, claim viewers.

The love is actually heartfelt.

And fuck, if that doesn’t make Ghost realize a few things about himself.

About Soap.

Consume is no different, his ass. He might have to have a stern talk with his agent in the near future.

(Or not.)

[catsandbats13]

I wrote a Stan x reader fanfic!

I have never written a fanfic before, let alone written smut (spoiler alert) so I hope my fellow Grunkle lovers like it!

Also everyone say thank you to @rubydracogirl for proofreading this for me! You’re the best!

Here’s chapter 1, I’ll be posting the rest shortly

(You can also read it on ao3 if you prefer)

Author's note: you’ll notice the reader only refers to him as Stan, as at this point in the series no one else knew he was Stanley and not Stanford. Also I didn’t want the reader to refer to him as Stanford cause in my mind I’m just picturing Ford instead lol.

Additionally I apologize but I completely left Waddles out, I know he was there in the episode, I just didn’t include him cause I felt it was a bit distracting. Sorry for all you big Waddles fans out there! This is also my first time writing Stan x reader or any fanfic of any kind, so I apologize if it’s a bit OOC.

Scaryoke Scars

CHAPTER 1

You were still trying to wrap your head around everything that had happened. The night had started normally enough with the Shack’s grand re-opening party, attended by the grateful townspeople after Stan had exposed Lil Gideon for the fraud that he was.

You had expected to see some awkward teenagers hanging on the periphery, some smashing of what Mabel referred to as “Stañiata’s”, and maybe even dance with Stan, who you’d been pining after for months since you were hired as additional personnel for the Shack at the beginning of summer.

What you hadn’t expected was for the ground to start shaking, scattering the partygoers as they ran for safety, and for Dipper, Mabel and Soos to round the corner being chased by a horde of zombies.

Sure, you weren’t oblivious to the strangeness of Gravity Falls, what with the kids and their spooky journal constantly getting involved with the paranormal, but you had hoped that after the craziness of Gideon’s defeat there’d be a bit of a break from action and adventure.

You’d had the whole thing worked out; you’d wait until a classic 80s song came on, and make your way over to Stan in his stupidly sexy form fitting suit. From there you would sidle up to him and ask how he’s enjoying his party, he’d make some dumb comment about how it’s high time the people of this town realized the Mystery Shack was the ultimate party destination or joke about how he should’ve charged more for tickets. Then you’d both laugh and he’d share one of those smiles meant for you and only you. You’d gather your courage and reach out your hand and ask “Would you care for a dance?” And in your fantasy he’d chuckle and do that adorable gesture where he blushes and shyly rubs the back of his neck before looking in your eyes and saying “I can’t say no to you, doll.” You’d imagined the two of you dancing the night away and sharing flirty glances and maybe even more, but those dreams were quickly dashed when you saw the mob of the undead coming after the kids.

“Dipper! What’s the one thing I asked you not to do?” Mabel scolded her brother.

“Raise the dead,” Dipper responded remorsefully.

“And what did you do?”

“Raise the dead.”

You couldn’t help but find it slightly funny how cavalier Mabel was about her twin summoning the undead, clearly this wasn’t their first rodeo with the paranormal.

More pressingly though, the zombies were rapidly closing in, leaving the four of you backed up against the side of the shack.

Soos heroically stepped in front of you all, attempting to shield you from the imminent danger.

“Get back dudes, this is about to get intense!”

As the zombies tore through the picnic table like it was nothing, you all screamed in unison, until the terror of the moment was temporarily broken by Soos pulling out his phone to snap a quick picture, commenting, “You gotta admit, this is pretty cool!”

“Not really the time, Soos!” You responded, unable to keep panic from creeping into your voice.

“Don’t panic! Maybe they’re just a really ugly flash mob!” Mabel reasoned in a trembling voice.

Leave it to her to be optimistic in the face of certain death.

“Dudes, stay calm,” Soos interjected confidently.

“With all the zombie movies I’ve seen, I know literally everything there is to know about how to avoid zombies.”

Soos was quickly proven wrong, and you watched in horror as one of the undead lurched forward and bit Soos hard on the shoulder, causing the handyman’s eyes to cloud over to a pale white, his skin becoming pallid and gray with tinges of sickly green as he was turned into a member of the terrifying horde in front of you.

“Second thought, gonna flip the script. Can I…eat your brains? Yay or nay? I’m seeing some yay faces here…”

The three of you jumped back and screamed in terror at the sight of your friend being transformed. Not wasting any time, you grabbed an arm from both twins and took off running, pulling them along around the side of the house, trying desperately to get away from what seemed like an endless, ever approaching crowd of zombies.

As you rounded the corner, Dipper spotted the golf cart to the side and shouted, “Quick! The golf cart!” Only for it to immediately be torn apart by the flesh eating monsters.

“Oh come on!” he said in an exasperated voice.

Soos and the rest of the zombies were right behind you, and you heard the handyman say, “Hoo, that’s a bummer! Good news for me though!”

“Soos!” Dipper and you shouted indignantly at the same time.

“Sorry dude, I just really want those brains!” The zombie Soos chuckled.

“Stay back!” Dipper shouted, taking the shovel he’d been carrying and using it like a baseball bat to launch one of the party’s light up disco balls at the creatures, and hopefully force them back a bit. But to your shock and horror, the zombie simply swallowed the thing whole. The disco ball lit up its ribcage dramatically from within in shades of blue, yellow and red, illuminating your terrified faces.

“Give it up, dudes, your fighting only makes us look more rad!” Soos reasoned as him and the zombies continued their now extra radical approach towards your group.

The three of you backed away from the steadily approaching horde, Mabel gripping onto her brother for dear life and you holding tightly to the sleeve of Dipper’s vest, keeping the kids as close to you as possible. You would be damned if you were gonna let these kids get hurt under your watch. You didn’t know what you could possibly do in defense of literal flesh eating monsters, but you knew you’d go down fighting if it meant giving the kids a chance to get away.

“What do we do? Where’s Grunkle Stan?” Mabel fretted.

“How’s he supposed to help? He doesn’t even believe in the supernatural!” Dipper cried.

Oh god, where is Stan? You thought anxiously.

Dipper is right, he thinks this is all made up, does he even stand a chance against an army of zombies?

You couldn’t bear to think of what they could’ve possibly done to him. Little did you know, you had severely underestimated Stan and his ability to kick ass when it counts.

The mob had quickly gotten too close for comfort and you used your grip on the twins to drag them further down the path towards the front door of the Shack, hoping to find safety behind its doors.

Before you could reach it though a zombie popped up in front of Mabel, and for a split second you thought she was a goner, but the girl didn’t hesitate and used the portable karaoke machine she’d been pulling along the whole time to knock the creature’s head clean off it’s shoulders, shouting, “TAKE THAT SUCKA!”, killing it instantly. Mabel seemed just as stunned as the rest of you that she’d been successful.

“This thing’s a surprisingly good weapon!” You heard her remark before the zombies got within arms reach and you all bolted for the door. The three of you raced inside and you slammed the door shut just as decomposing hands began to grasp at it.

“Quick! We need to board up all the windows!” Dipper instructed, Mabel and yourself swiftly following his lead and blocked the door with whatever you could find in the gift shop, prioritizing the heavier objects like the Mayan calendar and a metal rack of keychains to obstruct the entrance.

Despite your best efforts, the zombies managed to squeeze their hungry limbs through the gaps in the doorway, grasping and clawing at the air in desperation, but not getting beyond that for the time being.

“Okay, maybe that’ll hold them,” you said uncertainly, backing up to the relative safety of the rear of the gift shop.

All of a sudden, the side window was smashed open, revealing a grinning zombie Soos brandishing a drill.

“Hey dudes! By the way, I taught the zombies how to get into the fuse box,” the lights flickered off as he spoke, confirming his statement and leaving you in darkness with only some faint red light from outside.

“Among these dudes I’m like a genius!”

With the window broken, the undead began pouring through the frame and stalking towards you.

“Get those brains, dawg!” You heard Soos rooting for the zombies from outside the shack.

Panicked and trapped, you tried to run to the other door, only for several arms to punch through it and attempt to grab ahold of you. You and the kids had no choice but to retreat into the corner.

“Dipper, isn’t there something in the journal about defeating zombies?!” Mabel cried fearfully.

Dipper pulled out the worn journal and frantically flipped through the pages, searching for something that could save you from this deadly predicament.

“No! There’s nothing here about weaknesses!” He cried in a panic.

“This can’t be happening, I wanted answers so bad I put everyone in danger. Now we’re toast, it’s all my fault and no one can save us!”

A zombified arm popped out of the mob and snatched Dipper up, making him scream, “AH, NO! Mabel, I’m sorry!”

You reacted instantly and grabbed ahold of his midsection and used every bit of strength you had to pull him out of the monster's grasp. You succeeded and managed to wrench Dipper away and instinctively put yourself in between the kids and the rapidly approaching dead. You knew in your heart this was the end, but you hoped that maybe you could distract the zombies long enough for Dipper and Mabel to get away. You were more scared than you’d ever been in your life but you were more afraid of losing the twins, who you’d quickly grown to love over the course of the summer.

“Kids, you gotta run away, don’t wait for me!” You shouted what you thought would be your last words. You braced yourself to fight, your hands clenched into fists in front of you. But before you could take a swing, you were yanked to the side by rotting green arms, pulling you towards its gaping maw. At the very last second, before it had the chance to bite you, the zombie's head was knocked clean off by the violent swing of a baseball bat and a powerful stomp reduced the skull to dust. You fell to the floor, stunned and tried to process what you were seeing.

There, stood in front of you, broad chest heaving with effort, was none other Stan Pines. His suit was ripped and torn all over and covered in what you could only assume were zombie guts, clenched tightly in his hand was a bat that had clearly taken out more than a couple zombie heads on the way there.

He wasted no time and shouted, “YOU THREE, ATTIC, NOW!” in a voice that under normal circumstances would’ve been kinda hot, but you were still too overwhelmed by nearly having become zombie chow.

“Gr-Grunkle Stan?!” Dipper stuttered, clearly in disbelief at the sight of his uncle being such a badass.

“I said NOW!” Stan repeated harshly, jolting you into action as you jumped up and frantically ran with the twins through the living room and up the stairs towards safety, with Stan following, fighting back your attackers as you retreated.

You could hear Stan’s shouts and taunts as he held off the zombie attackers completely on his own.

“Alright you undead jerks, you ready to die twice?!”

You stopped at the top of the stairs once you saw the kids were well ahead of you to look back at Stan. He was a blur, swinging the bat and taking out the zombies like it was nothing, smashing head after head and avoiding every swipe and claw at him.

“The only wrinkly monster who harasses my family is me! Take that, and that!” Stan continued to beat the swarm back, not even hesitating when one zombie gained the upper hand and bit the bat in half, rearing back and punching through its head with his brass knuckles.

“Eat it, no-eyes! Anyone else want a piece?!” He hollered, pumped up on adrenaline and rage.

As much as you wanted to keep watching this impressive display of power by your long-time crush, you knew it was only a matter of time before the mass of the dead made their way upstairs. Reassured that he could handle himself, you turned tail and ran up to the attic, meeting the kids in their room and slamming the door shut behind you.

“Where’s Grunkle Stan?” Mabel asked you worriedly.

“Don’t worry, he should be right behind me,” you reassured the young girl, patting her arm in an attempt to comfort her.

The moment was broken by a loud pounding at the door, the three of you huddled together in fear, expecting the undead to break through any second, but instead the door swung open to reveal Stan, coughing slightly and hunched over, but safe and sound.

“Ugh, ow, everything hurts.” He complained as he made his way into the attic and barricaded the door with a chair.

“Grunkle Stan, that was amazing!” Dipper said in shock and awe at having witnessed his Great Uncle take on a legion of the dead and kick absolute ass.

“Are you alright?” He asked, before awkwardly chuckling and remarking, “Well, at least you can’t deny magic exists anymore.”

After a short pause, to everyone’s surprise Stan responded, “Kid, I’ve always known.”

“What?!” The three of you yelled in unison.

You hadn’t been expecting that, he’d done a great job of feigning ignorance up until this point, you genuinely thought he was oblivious to the weirdness that permeated the town.

“Wait, what are you talking about?” Dipper said in total confusion.

“I’m not an idiot, Dipper! Of course this town is weird! And the one thing I know about that weirdness is that it’s dangerous!”

As if to prove his point, a zombie hand broke through the wood of the blocked door, forcing you all further into the room and away from its deadly grip.

“I’ve been lying about it to try to keep you away from it, to try to protect you from it!”

You felt your heart squeeze at the confession, he was so protective of the kids. It made perfect sense to you as to why he’d chosen to lie, he really thought he was doing what was best for their safety. Not to mention the fact that Gravity Falls’s weirdness was why you were in this predicament in the first place.

The sound of shattering glass reached your ears as another zombie attempted to break into the room, this time through the window. With a powerful right hook, the monster was sent flying back from whence it came, landing in the middle of a crowd of zombies, who eerily stared back at you with their blank, dead eyes.

“It looks like I didn’t lie well enough.” Stan said bitterly.

“What do we do, what do we do?” Mabel cried anxiously.

Dipper pulled out his journal and began pacing the room.

“Well, normally the journal would help us, but there’s nothing in there about defeating zombies! It’s hopeless!”

Unbeknownst to him, the open book had been illuminated by one of the black lights from the party, revealing writing that was otherwise invisible.

“Wait, wait, wait! The text! It’s glowing in the black light!” Mabel exclaimed, drawing her brother's attention to this new discovery.

“What?” He was as surprised as the rest of you, and you all watched as he flipped through the pages, revealing more and more glowing hidden messages.

“All this time I thought I knew all the journal‘s secrets, but they’re written in some kind of invisible ink!” Dipper said in astonishment, his uncle echoing his words in shared astoundment.

“Invisible ink…”

Finally reaching the entry about zombies, Dipper said excitedly, “This is it!” And began to read aloud: “Zombies have a weakness! Previously thought to be invincible, their skulls can be shattered by a perfect four part harmony.”

A four part harmony? You thought. That’s oddly specific.

“Four part harmony, how can we create that? I have a naturally high pitched scream,” Dipper offered.

“I can make noises with my body, sometimes intentionally!” Stan volunteered. You suppressed a smile at that ridiculous statement.

“I can yell louder than the average person,” you proposed.

“Guys, guys,” Mabel interrupted. “I think you’re all missing the obvious solution.”

Cut to a few minutes later, the four of you are gathered on the roof with Mabel’s karaoke machine set up to the side, microphones in hand. You nervously gripped the mic in your sweaty palm as you observed just how big your undead audience was.

Is this even going to work? Is the last thing I do on this earth going to be singing karaoke? You pondered. Well I guess there are worse ways to go.

“Hello, hello? Is this thing on?” Mabel started doing her thing with the karaoke set up as the noise attracted more and more zombies who gathered below.

You gulped nervously, looking over at Stan for reassurance but he looked just as lost and unsure as you felt.

At least I’m not the only one questioning my life choices right now.

“Zombies and gentlemen!” Mabel announced. “I’m Mabel, they’re Dipper, Stan and Y/N, and together we’re Love Patrol Alpha!”

“I never agreed to that name!” Dipper quickly interjected, not even wanting monsters to associate him with his sister's goofy band name.

Mabel ignored him entirely and shouted, “Hit it!” cueing up the music.

The first beats of the classic 80s song began blasting from the speakers, the lyrics appearing on the device's screen with accompanying animated silhouettes of dancers.

Reading the first few lines, Stan commented, “Uh, Mabel, our lives may not be worth this.”

You had to roll your eyes at that, only Stan would say that getting eaten by zombies was preferable to singing one cheesy karaoke song.

As the first lyrics scrolled past, Dipper began to sing hesitantly.

“Friday night, and we’re gonna party till dawn. Don’t worry daddy, I’ve got my favourite dress on?” He covered the mic in embarrassment.

“Mabel this is stupid!”

Wanting to help encourage the boys to sing for their lives, you joined Mabel on the next verse and sang, bopping along to the beat.

“Roll into the party, the boys are looking our way. We just keep dancing, we don’t care what they say! And all the boys are getting up in my face-ahh!”

Yours and Mabel’s serenade was rudely interrupted by a zombie who had appeared at the edge of the roof, attempting to grab ahold of the closest victim.

“Guys! We have to sing together or it won’t work!” Mabel cried.

Your heart inadvertently began fluttering as you heard Stan join in with his gruff singing voice.

“Boys are a bore, let’s show ‘em the door,”

A wide grin overtook your face as you, the kids and Stan all harmonized together.

“We’re taking over the dance floor! Oh-oh, girls do what we like!”

The force of your singing combined sent a shockwave through the crowd of zombies, having an immediate effect on them, they covered their ears and several of their heads just straight up exploded. Emboldened by the effectiveness of the music, you sang the next lines even louder and more passionately along with the Pines family.

“Oh-oh, we’re taking over tonight! Oh-oh, girls do what we like! Oh-oh, we’re taking over tonight!”

The more the four of you sang, the more zombies began to succumb to the deadly sounds of karaoke. Skulls were exploding everywhere, covering the yard in a mess of green guts and flesh.

“We’re queens of the disco! Oh-oh, girls do what we like! Oh-oh, we’re taking over tonight!”

Dipper jumped in at the end to belt out the last line of the song.

“Taking over toniiiiight!”

Suddenly, a final zombie popped up next to him, making him scream, but Mabel was ready for it.

“DUCK!” she shouted, taking aim with a massive confetti cannon, which she shot with impeccable aim and sent the monster's head sailing through the air, finally landing in a punch bowl from the party earlier with a satisfying splash.

“Thank you, we’ll be here all night!” Mabel shouted triumphantly.

“Deal with it, zombie idiots! Ahahaha!” Stan gleefully hollered, laughing maniacally as he celebrated. You couldn’t help but laugh along with him, so relieved the nightmare was over and a little in disbelief that you’d just defeated an army of the undead with the power of karaoke.

“PINES! PINES! PINES! PINES!” The family jumped and chanted in unison, fully claiming their victory.

You giggled and shook your head at their antics, amused.

Well, that certainly could’ve gone worse, you thought to yourself as you watched the family cheer in celebration.

Link to chapter 2 below

[misslazarus]

TANGLED BLESSINGS GAME JAM

Solo TTRPG posting again for my fellow solo game enjoyers/the solo game curious!

I’ve posted before about Tangled Blessings by @cassimothwin , a project I was so thrilled to back and play (and find in the wild a couple of times 👀). It’s a really engaging solo/duet rpg about being a student at a spooky magical school, and facing off against your rival. Also very cool to know, Tangled Blessings is a hack of the iconic game Anamnesis by @goblinmixtape (a game I mean to post about here one day if I feel I actually have anything interesting to add other than “I love it” lol).

In extremely cool news for amateur/fledgling game writers and those who never find time to participate in NaNoWriMo [meeee], Cassi Mothwin opened up a Tangled Blessings game jam on itch.io !! The game jam is for expansions to /projects inspired by Tangled Blessings. The jam is running until February 29th (leap day swag btw). I think this is such a cool idea to explore a really fun game, and I’m planning on submitting something! If you want to participate and don’t already own it, Cassi has a free preview to get you started!

DISCLAIMER: I am not posting this in any capacity other than as a big fan of Cassi’s work— and to alert my buddies on here who are into this kind of thing and to whom I’ve spoken about Tangled Blessings and solo rpgs in general.

I’ve linked the jam below for the rules and info. I also linked Tangled Blessings and Anamnesis itch.io pages so I hope all the links don’t nerf this post in the tags.

Happy writing y’all!

[fmluder24]

Here’s my fic for the @jewsinfandoms”Hope” prompt.

After meeting with Scully's doctors to start IVF, Scully and Mulder have a conversation about religion, meaning, and hope. Text below the cut.

TW: discussion of infertility and abortion

It is also a prequel to my fic Secret Mission: Baby Spooky which you can read here: https://archiveofourown.org/works/48569344/chapters/122513113

“Do you have any questions, Mulder?”

He glanced over at her from the driver’s seat.

“No. It was really pretty straight forward. Everyone at the fertility clinic explained every step in excruciating detail. I think I’ve got it from here.”

“Okay. There’s just a lot of rules before, during and after. And you’re not the best with rules.”

“Scully, it’s a very basic process. One I’ve done quite a bit.”

“But you told me you’d never—”

“No. I haven’t donated before. But I’ve… done the same mechanics a lot. So I think I’ve got this.”

“It’s just there was one rule you sort of balked at.”

“I didn’t balk at anything.”

“The two to three days of abstinence rule is actually very important.”

“And I will abstain for the requisite amount of time. Scout’s honor.”

“Are you sure?”

“Scully, how much of a horn dog do you think I am? I have a mostly functioning prefrontal cortex. I can hold off from ejaculating for a few days.”

“Mulder, when was the last time you went that long?”

“I… have done it before.”

“Since you were a teenager?”

“I plead the fifth. Look, I will do it. I am capable of following instructions when I want to. I will do everything they tell me to. I don’t want to mess this up for you. Anyway, looks like we’ve arrived at your stop, madam.”

He pulled off the road and into the parking garage of Scully’s apartment building. They sat together in the car for a few minutes, not saying anything and definitely not looking at each other.

“Do you want to… come up, for a bit?” asked Scully.

“Uh… no.”

“No,” Scully repeated.

“No. I have some stuff I gotta get done tonight. You know, all the chores that pile up as an adult? That stuff.”

“Yeah. Me too. There’s always stuff.”

“Always stuff to do. That’s adulthood. That and wearing stupid ties.”

“Try heels.”

“I have and I think I would rather die than wear them every day.”

Scully laughed. “You’ve—Mulder, you puzzle me. You always have.”

“Is that a good thing?”

She hesitated.

“Mostly. I guess. I’ll get out of your car now. Thanks for the ride and for agreeing to this. I know it’s a really big thing to ask of someone.”

She opened the car door and then paused.

“Mulder, I cannot believe I’m saying this. I almost don’t want to. I feel like it’ll jinx something.”

“Scully, you’re a scientist. You don’t believe in jinxes.”

“I have my moments of weakness, I suppose.”

“Well, say what you want to say and I’ll run around the car three times and spit.”

“What?”

“When you bring up Macbeth, or the Scottish play, I should say, you gotta run around the building and spit three times.”

“How do you—”

“I was a theatre kid.”

“You were a theatre kid?” asked Scully.

“Anyway, what were you going to say?”

“I don’t think we can just move past that. I always figured you were a jock.”

“I contain multitudes.”

“You should really disclose this kind of thing on your donor paperwork. What if it’s genetic? That changes everything.”

“Scully, what were you going to say?”

“Okay, okay. I was going to say that I feel… excited, I think.”

“You think?”

“I don’t feel excited a lot. But it’s… nice to have something to look forward to. A dream I thought I said goodbye to a long time ago.”

“I’m excited too. I mean, this is your dream and I’m just along for the ride, but I feel hopeful. Like there’s this bright light coming over the horizon. I’m happy for you.”

“Well… I guess I’ll go up now.”

“Have a nice night, Scully.”

“You too, Mulder. Just don’t—”

“I won’t. Don’t worry. I will be on my best behavior for the next 72 hours.”

“Thanks. Oh—” She closed the door again. “And let’s just keep this between us for the time being. It’s just a private matter and I don’t want people to ask questions.”

“Who would I even tell? Of course I’ll keep it to myself. In any case, it’s bad luck to tell people early, no? At least, my mother and father didn’t want anyone to know about Samantha until after at least forty days.”

“Forty days? Why forty days?”

“It’s not a fetus for the first forty days.”

“Actually, it’s not a fetus for the first eight weeks,” corrected Scully.

“You’re talking about science. What does science know? I’m talking about Halacha. Jewish law.”

Scully rolled her eyes. “Oh? And what do a bunch of old rabbis know about pregnancy?”

“Like Christianity doesn’t have some unscientific observations? Are priests any more knowledgeable? At least a lot of rabbis were fathers.”

“You’ve got me there. So forty days is when the soul shows up?”

“Depends on who you ask. Conception. 40 days. The quickening. Birth. It isn’t the main question. In any case, the baby isn’t a person until it’s born for most people. That’s why Judaism is overall more pro-choice. I mean, I don’t think your supposed to just get an abortion for fun, but no one is doing that anyway unless you believe crazy right-wingers. Abortion’s okay, good even, when it’s about saving the life of the person that does exist— the mother.”

“Huh. I had no idea. I guess I’m just used to the Catholic teachings about ensoulment at conception and that personhood goes along with that. I figured Judaism believed the same thing.”

“And do you… agree with those teachings? With what the Church says about abortion?”

“What does that have to do with anything, Mulder?”

“Well, isn’t that the sort of conversation we should have at this point in what we are doing? We’re trying to reproduce, albeit unconventionally. Maybe it’s something we should know about each other. I think it’s fine. Especially when there is the well-being of a full-fledged person at stake.”

“Fine. I do and I don’t agree with the church. I know the science and the circumstances a woman can be in that would cause her to get an abortion. But, I understand why the Church considers an embryo a life. I give weight to Catholic teaching, but I must confess that I haven’t exactly lived up to it myself.”

“What do you mean?”

“I…”

“Scully? What do you mean?”

“I… I’ve never told anyone this and it’s something I’ve always felt conflict over it, but I actually got an abortion in college.”

“You did? That surprises me.”

“It wasn’t an easy decision. But the father was my married professor and I couldn’t exactly tell my parents what I had done. I was pretty sure at the time that they would have disowned me. So, I decided to take a pill and… that was that. And I never told anyone. Until you.”

“Not even in confession?”

Scully scoffed. “I can’t even imagine confessing that to a priest. It’s a terrible sin in Catholicism. It’s murder. But I… I was scared. Maybe it was cowardly of me. I wouldn’t do it again, but maybe that’s easy to say because I’ll never be a scared kid like that again.”

“Thank you. For sharing with me. I know that must be hard to talk about.”

“You know, Mulder, I’ve gone through phases where I’ve wondered about what I did. If it was murder like they say. And what kind of person I am to be okay with what I did.”

“Hey, you were young. And probably really scared from the sound of it. And I know you’re not asking me to absolve you, but if it’s any consolation, I really don’t think what you did was murder. The embryo was a few cells; not a person. I’m just sorry you ended up in a situation where you had to make that kind of decision.”

“You might make fun of me for saying what I want to say next.”

“Never.”

“Yes. You might. You’re kind of a tool when it comes to my Catholicism.”

“Well, maybe so but in Brooklyn, you— Never mind. Let’s not get into it. I’m not going to try to defend myself. You’re right and I’m sorry. I won’t make fun of you for what you want to say.”

“The thought has crossed my mind that my infertility is a result of my actions.”

“Is there scientific evidence to support that?”

“No, but we’re not talking about science,” said Scully. “We’re talking about faith and religion, aren’t we?”

“I guess so. When you’re making this kind of journey with someone, rationality kind of falls away at a certain point, doesn’t it? Falling into moments of weakness, like you said earlier.”

“Exactly. So when you first told me that I was very unlikely to ever have children, I wondered if maybe God was punishing me. Maybe this is God’s way of saying that I shouldn’t be a mother after what I did. You probably think I’m stupid for believing in all of that.”

Mulder was silent for a minute.

“Scully, do you think of God as your parent?”

“Mostly, I suppose.”

“Would you punish your scared child by permanently altering their body?”

“No. I wouldn’t.”

“And are you more moral than the God you worship?”

“No.”

“So why would you think that God would do such a thing to you?”

“I… I guess I never thought about it that way. But… then I’m sort of left with wondering why this happened to me.”

“That’s what’s always interesting to me about Christians. You have this faith, this belief that everything is part of a plan and has this meaning. I guess in some ways that must be comforting, but it seems like you all spend an awful lot of time twisting yourselves up trying to rationalize.”

“But often a twisted answer is better than no answer at all,” said Scully.

“Is it? It seems like the answer you settled on has been haunting you. The way I see it, sometimes bad things happen. And there’s no reason and no one to blame and nothing to be done except living in the aftermath.”

“How can you find reasons to keep going in the face of something that you think is meaningless?”

“I guess… I’m the product of centuries of ethnic cleansing and scapegoating. For me, I can’t sit there looking at generations of suffering and try to fit it into some story, some lesson about human nature and intolerance. It seems like for you, it’s intolerable to not have a reason. For me, trying to find a reason is what is intolerable. It’s actually almost insulting on some level for me. What matters isn’t finding a reason, it’s living with what is and finding my way forward. So, no, I don’t think your infertility is a result of your seeking an abortion. Not on a medical level, and certainly not on a spiritual one. What matters is what we do about it now. Which is why you asked me to do what you did. And I think you are going to be an excellent mother. Because now you are ready to be one.”

“Do you think it’s going to work?”

“If I thought this was an empty endeavor, I would have said no. That being said, I tend to believe in far-fetched things. But you, you’re grounded. Hope isn’t a thing with feathers in Judaism. It isn’t frail and flighty. It’s a tikvah, from kavah. Kavah means to bind together. Hope is a rope. A bond. A bond between people. So if you believe it’s possible, I believe it’s possible. If you have hope, I have hope.”

“A rope? One we can hang ourselves from? Sorry. I know you are trying to help. I guess I’m scared of starting to look forward to something. Because it’s going to hurt all the more when it doesn’t work.”

“Hey, it’s going to work, Scully! I know it.”

“Well, despite my best judgment, it’s your hope that is giving me hope. I tease you a lot about how… well, how silly some of your beliefs can be. But you’ve got to admit some of what you believe is very out there. The strength of your beliefs buoys mine. Are you sure you don’t want to come up?”

“Oh, fine.” Mulder smiled. “Twist my arm, will ya?”

The taciturn Scully had used up all her words by the time they got up to her apartment, and they sat together in front of her TV in amicable silence, slight and hesitant smiles on their lips.

[mulders-too-large-shirt]

s5 episode 16 thoughts

are we sat for some REAL scully and mulder time?? some classic case action?? will mulder eat sunflower seeds and scully do an autopsy?? we must begin to find out.

(well, i found out. and i diagnose this episode with lacking in scully)

this episode really didn’t do anything for me, which is often the case when scully does not feature prominently. it’s like, if she’s not going to be on the screen, why are we here? to just watch a bunch of random other stuff? absolutely not. this is the mulder AND scully show. frankly, they’re more like two halves of a whole than separate people. unless the writers have cooked up a specific and intentional solo episode, focusing just on mulder rarely works! 

mulder, you are my special boy, but it is also clear that you are the writer’s special boy, and that does kinda piss me off, because i believe that being a special boy is a gender neutral activity

anyway.

we begin in delaware, where someone, later revealed to be named marty, is walking up some stairs. she lights a cigarette on the stove (which seems dangerous) and then receives some spooky visions of a man being stabbed. which is not great. 

the cops find the stabbed guy in a motel with marty hiding behind the curtain!! she’s covered in blood. and blind. they make a big point of this.

is this gonna be like, diversity win! the killer is blind! or did she start to sit down for a smoke in front of the TV and then get teleported to the scene? 

scully tells us that the deceased, named little monster (put your paws up!) is a drug dealer that used children in his dealings. wow. he sounds like an awful guy. do not disgrace the little monster name.

(just now, as i edit my notes, realizing how funny it is we get scully saying “little monster”… scully lady gaga fan confirmed?! she bent time and space to stream disease)

mulder points out he has the same pair of pants as the dead drug dealer. classic mulder.

marty glenn was found at the scene of the crime. she has been blind since birth and has an extensive rap sheet. how could she bleed a man out with surgical precision, you ask? idk, maybe she’s just that good

LMAOOO this guy who is here from the case, detective pennock, is convinced marty has a sixth sense, which i am sure mulder is not used to hearing. he must have been relieved.

bahaha when they come to visit her, marty clarifies that it’s not magic that lets her know it’s detective pennock, it’s his trash cologne. read him for filth.

she asks who is with him, though. when mulder introduces himself she asks “and the lady?” so she is very perceptive. or perhaps she can see things in other ways…? supernaturally?

ohhh, she asks mulder what he’s staring at and he says “an innocent woman… i hope” now what is afoot here…

(i should have known. mulder and that Need to save people who often don’t even want his help)

scully is asking her questions. ohh, marty’s a real firecracker. marty yells out to “stinky”, the detective, who is watching through a one way mirror!! she says she fed the murder weapon to her seeing eye dog. so marty’s got jokes, i see.

mulder is intentionally provoking her, trying to point out that she was doing an awful job cleaning up at the murder site, and clearly she couldn’t have done the whole killing thing, because she is BLIND, so why don’t you just tell us who did it so we can go out and get ‘em?

will this provoke her into revealing her hand?

she slaps his cup of water away and tells him to go to hell! so i guess this did not have its intended effect 

mulder thinks she’s honed all her senses around her blindness, and that she is trying to project an image of confidence. but he doesn’t think that she killed the little monster, even if she won’t explain herself and somehow knew there was only one stab wound. ohhh, do you think she’s covering for some kid that the drug dealer worked with going in there and taking care of business on their own??

(damn. would have been cool if that was what happened. kids killing drug dealers is so rarely a plot point in media. together we can change this)

scully is going to the crime scene with detective pennock while mulder is staying behind to “investigate something”. nooo, don’t separate! you’ll make me sad :(

(the agents separating either leads to soul-crushing angst or an incredibly boring episode)

marty’s taking a polygraph, but she wants to skip the baseline questions and get to the good stuff. and while i do not believe in polygraphs, i can imagine that if they DID do anything of use, skipping the calibration stage would be a bad idea. she denies all involvement with the murder. hmmm. it seems she’s lying about having no reason to know little monster, though.

mulder writes “did you see the murder?” on a piece of legal paper (i like his handwriting!) and shows it to the man operating the test, who reacts like he’s pulling some sick joke. but marty says “why don’t you just ask me yourself?”. and again the polygraph machine says she is lying when she says no!!!

mulder calls to share this news and LMAOOOO thank god scully said what i have been thinking for 5 seasons now: “would you like me to remind you why polygraphs are inadmissible in court?” <- truly a woman of science and reason!! my beloved scully!!

ohhhhh, she tells mulder to give her a call when he figures it out… and then finds bloody gloves tucked into the place where you put used shaving blades at the crime scene!

(having a special place where you put used shaving blades is absolutely CRAZY, btw. i feel like that is just asking for a disaster. but i guess that leaving them in the trash would do the same thing! oh, a glimpse into a world i was glad to not be around for…)

marty is seeing more terrifying visions of a woman in a bar in great danger!!! she’s calling out for a phone. she calls and tells some bartender about a guy hitting on a redhead at the end of the bar!!! and he’s right there!!!! the woman is able to escape because she tells him to leave her alone!!! and that she’s watching him!!!

damn… does she know this guy??

they are giving her the gloves found in the razor slot, saying her prints are already all over them!!

mulder points out she hasn’t applied for any benefits, which leads scully to wonder if she is lying about being blind! hmm…

i also love “okay, so by your reasoning, the killer took off with the murder weapon but not the gloves, leaving marty to come in, go straight to the gloves and hide them in the one place that nobody would easily think to find them” (he nods) “i think that’s the most accurate scenario available to us right now”

-said while looking deeply into scully’s eyes… yeah <3 king of facts and logic /s

the guy who was hitting on the woman at the bar is trying to sell little monster’s drugs!!!

now they’re testing marty to learn if she is really blind, and while the answer is yes, her pupils dilate at one point, when she happens to be seeing the visions. mulder goes in to ask what she sees, but is interrupted by detective pennock!! the DA is saying he won’t try her without a murder weapon, and to let her go. 

she’s checking out and mulder watches her go. scully says there are two kinds of blood on the gloves, and she’s sending them to the lab!!! shoutout to the lab. an unsung hero.

meanwhile, the murderer is assaulting the redhead, and marty sees the visions. she yells that she needs to get to spring street and then walks into traffic trying to get there!!! a man guides her there. shoutout to that guy for real because she was going to get hit by a car. 

she’s trying to find anything on spring street, and she finds the poor woman’s body in the dumpster!! and now her prints are all over her body!!

marty comes back to the police office to say she killed them both with the blood on her hands!!

does she think this will make the visions stop??

time to deploy mulder. he lights her cigarette, and says he likes and admire her. he thinks she tried to stop the murders, but didn’t get there in time. and she needs to help them stop him before he- whoever he is- kills again. he says he won’t let her plead guilty!! oh, mulder’s need to save everybody……

the murderer is on the phone, and the person who was going to buy drugs from him says he won’t do it; someone is clearly gunning for him, and he does not want to get involved. some old girlfriend called him to warn against dealing with him?!? the killer is trying to convince phone man to go through with the deal, but he is getting mad. 

mulder is going over the files, when detective pennock walks in saying she signed the confession. claiming to have killed them for drugs, and she even knows where to find them! she leads them to the murderer’s drugs!

mulder doesn’t buy it at all.

“you are one skeptical guy, agent mulder!” <- LMAO he was shocked by that. been called a lot of things in his life, but not skeptical lmaooo

scully’s calling! neither of the blood types on the glove match marty’s!!! she didn’t do it!!!

the dealer guy just watched them take the drugs… 

mulder’s back. you can’t get away from him. he sits next to marty in her cell. he says he knows who she’s protecting!! “you’re protecting the man who murdered your mother” <- HUH???

she died from a single stab wound to the right kidney!! just like the others!!!

but she never met her mother?? somehow she was pregnant with marty when it happened but died?? and they were able to save marty?? how is that possible?? you know what! i’m not going to worry about it.

so the blood flow interruption caused her blindness… and maybe during that time she gained a connection between herself and the killer where she sees through his eyes. and that doesn’t make her responsible. her being in jail won’t accomplish anything. he tells her they’ll find him with or without her help. 

this is pretty crazy world building to just dump on us at this point

they take her somewhere else in cuffs, but she’s receiving another vision!!! one of herself!!! the killer must be near!!! he is!! he’s watching her get loaded into the car!!

off to a women’s detention center. where mulder is already there!!! she’s being released because she is no longer a suspect. 

they found the guy!!! charles!!! it was his blood on the glove!

OH SHIT HE’S HER FATHER??? that was their connection??? she’s crying upon hearing this :(

detective pennock will not pursue aiding and abetting charges IF she agrees to help them find the guy. ooooo… she agrees. on the condition that she will be protected until he is caught. 

wait, why is mulder talking into a walkie talkie hot? what the hell. don’t worry about that actually.

scully is here too, listening to this explanation. “well, if all this is true, let’s go get him” <- that’s the spirit!!! who cares if the spiritual nonsense is real, we have crime to solve!

but he doesn’t think the killer will be in there…

detective pennock is in marty’s room while she packs, saying she doesn’t need to bring everything. but she says it’s too late!! he’s already here!!

she knocks pennock out with a tea kettle and steals his gun!!! go get him!!

mulder and scully are rushing back to her place. the killer is here!! he is approaching her!!!

OHHH SHE STANDS UP!!! “i hate the way you see me” and BLAM!! shot right in the head!!!

pennock is locking her up, saying she did this one. they watch as she is walked away.

mulder comes to visit, offering his hand through the cell. she says all she sees now is the sea, near where her father slash the killer used to live. 

“well, you’re lucky he wasn’t a fan of the ice capades”, he says, once again referring to something i know nothing about.

(i looked it up and it’s a traveling ice skating show. why does bro hate the ice skaters so much! anyway, i threw wikipedia $15 for always being there for me like a best friend. and i still want to read an ice skating fic so you didn’t persuade me you’d look bad out on the rink, mulder)

okay, so final thoughts: while this was a semi-interesting episode with an attempt to pull on my heartstrings, and a noble one at that, there was barely any scully at all. and this is essential to my enjoyment of an episode.

also, the lore reveal that her mother was murdered and her dad was the killer, and in the process of somehow killing her mother but not her, they formed a psychic connection, was just too sudden for me. it felt weird and abrupt and like it wasn’t hinted to at all, and then it was supposed to make perfect sense. it did not. 

listen, every season has a few flop episodes, and maybe that’s what we’re dealing with here. so far though, i think s5 has had the highest bangers to flops ratio, which is to say that most of the episodes have been very good, so we are due a less interesting one here or there.

but you know what would make them more interesting? scully <3

anyway, as always, tell me what you think! was this episode also just meh for you, or did you love it? or hate it? know any fun facts? any interesting memories from when you watched it the first time? please do share!

[ghostlythunderbird]

I am coming to offer this thot to anyone who wants it because I have no brain juice to even write this.

But my mind has been on some Werewolf!Ghost action for a bit now, not just the regular giant wolf that walks in two legs no no. I'm talking about the Twilight big ass doggos type of werewolves. But only only that; the werewolf’s human form also has ears and a tail (kind of like a hybrid).

ANYWAYS I had a thot about how Price and Laswell could be were keepers parse a and they would recently capture another werewolf (I think of them being a female were because I do a lot of self inserting over here don't mind me lol) that they could potentially pair Ghost with; or whoever your thinking of babe it could be Gaz, Soap, Keegan, or even König the possibilities are endless in the spooky month.

As for you my dear sweet reader, your story is quite different; you were a lone wolf for a long time and you've never really been in a werewolf friendly place. People are fearful of your kind as most think your a mindless creature lingering for their flesh; well soon your found out to be a werewolf and are captured by a “Rehabilitation project” specifically for your kind. Your time there was actually pretty nice, you had shelter, food and you felt safe. The environment itself reminded you of your birth pack’s old hunting grounds.

Well soon after your feeling well and the veterinarian team clears you are in good health, your soon ready to be paired with the boys. But who could be a perfect fit? You needed someone to be strong and quite dominant, they also needed some pretty good genes is you know what I mean *aggressive eyebrow wiggles*

But at the same time could you IMAGINE all the trial and errors of being paired with these boys who have NO idea on how to court you properly. Ghost does show interest but doesn't even know where to start much less make a conversation with you, Gaz and Soap are beyond excited of finally having another werewolf (can guarantee soap will be too head over heels where his brain don't work much), Keegan might become too standoffish and poor König tries his best and you end up being gifted a whole ass moose.

Thanks for coming to my 12 am ADHD Ted talk (I have so much brain rot for this I just had to get it out there for you all to suffer with me please send help)

[superblysubpar]

Hi everyone!

I just wanted to share a quick little note about my blog and writing things. It's a little long, so I'll put it under the cut.

But I just wanna say that I'm so grateful and happy for and to see all the new faces around here (I logged back on and the amount of messages and new followers and just...wow), but I'm also so incredibly grateful for those of you that continue to stick around and have been here from the beginning. It makes me very emotional! Anyways, I'm not going anywhere, there's just some updates below on the general vibe of my blog for the foreseeable future.

I love you, mean it, and I'm so happy you're here 💛

I'll be sharing Summertime Magic throughout the week this week, thanks so much for your patience with it all. I'm really excited to share all 3 of these stories, and I've been having fun writing them. It's been over a year since their initial tease to the tumblr world, and I feel like I'm finally ready to set my babies free out of the nest so to speak 😅

That being said, it may be the imminent spooky season upon us & the stories I've been more gravitated towards to read lately, the general fandom drama that seems to always suck every ounce of fun out of here, or just my attitude and attempt towards practicing writing/having fun on here vs writing stories for real projects in the real world, but I'm feeling a Big Shift coming with my writing, specifically on my blog.

A lot of the stories I've had planned here, for the fandom, I'm starting to tweak and mess with and then I think - hold on. This could be my own. And while I could write them initially as fanfic and twist them later (much like what I did with wcil) that gets really complicated and it's a lot of work, and I'd love to just write them as my characters from the get go.

But there's obviously stories I want to write and practice with, and many of those lately are not quite "rom com" centered. There's still love stories, there's still smut, but I'm craving diving into practicing writing and reading more of the sci-fi, upside down, horror, apocalypse vibes lately and, don't hate me...

Angst.

So, like I said, the smut, the love, its not going anywhere, it just might be coming to you in some new packages. I hope you stick around to read them.

To off set this shift, I am gonna open my requests more, but not in the way I've typically done. I'll explain this later, but I'm gonna have some mini writing challenges for myself, and this will involve many a blurb of the smut and fluff and spice varieties. So if that's why you've followed me, have no fear. It's just the longer versions of those stories are taking a break is all, so I can give my full attention to the rom coms I'm writing outside of tumblr that I hope you'll get to read or watch one day soon.

Anyways, this is terribly long and you honestly deserve everything good in this world if you've read this entire thing.

I hope you stick around, and if not, no worries, I still love you 💛

[spookythesillyfella]

HI SPOOKY!!! UHM. FIRST ASK BECAUSE. EACH TIME I TRY AND START DERAILING AND TALK ABOUT TMBG. BUT!! JUST A FEW SILLY QUESTIONS I DON’T EXPECT YOU TO ANSWER ALL OF THEM BUT.

Whats everyone’s favorite game, including video games and board games? Do they have a specific game they like to play together??

(This one may tie into the last a little depending on your answer BUT!!) What’s their favorite activity to do as a group? Group ranging from duos to the entirety of them.

do any of then have a favorite band? Or just a song?

I. an not creative. i apologize.

OHHOHOO !!! HIHI HELLO !!!!! :DD

man . all theze are such STELLAR questionz !!! onez that i could ramble about for quite a while !!! hehe !!! X33

★ TRACEY – i think traceyz fav game might be Project Sekai [itz a headcanon ive had since the inception of the au – no matter how much i want to say it izn't . itz alwayz going to be canon in my heart] ; fav band / muzic artist iz undoubtedly Arctic Monkeys

★ SHRIGNOLD – ive actually mentioned thiz in one of my ficz . but shrigz fav game iz Dance Dance Revolution [likez rhythm gamez in general . but thatz definitely hiz faverite and the one hez best at – hez incredibly competitive also] ; fav band / muzic artist iz probably Mitski or Laufey [both of them tap into different aspectz of shrigz character ; Mitski focuzez more on the trauma hez endured . while Laufey rezonatez more with hiz love for .. well . love !!!]

★ BRENDON – i think brendonz fav game might be The Stanley Parable [ive alwayz thought the game kinda relatez to him . and i think it generally makez sense] ; hiz faverite band / muzic artist would either be Kikuo or GHOST . in my eyez

i think theze three would love playing stuff like Gartic Phone together – probably would like to get larz nd sketch involved also ; face to face . they alzo like to play cardz together . especially Uno [where brendon getz incredibly competitive – almost az much az shrig]

★ LARZ – larz doezn't have much of a love for gamez . but hed be a huge fan of the Cooking Mama franchize [i can feel it in my gut] ; faverite muzic artist would probably be Duster

★ SKETCH – sketchz faverite gamez would likely be the onez part of the Rhythm Heaven franchize [theyre goofy and have a really cute artstyle – i think theyd be something right up paperz alley ; pluz itz like my faverite nintendo property so im totally not influenced by anything hehe] ; faverite muzic artist would likely be Caravan Palace or Serani Poji

★ TONY – tonyz faverite game would probably be just . cardz in general – a game he might like just to hear about would be DDLC [totally not saying thiz becauze of any preexisting biasez or whateverrr ....] ; fav muzic artist would be The Caretaker or The Smiths [in my heart hez alwayz going to be relatable with 70% of Dobuno Awa'z discography but allaz .... he probably wouldn't like hiz muzic .....]

tony nd sketch love to draw "together" – sketch likez to draw nd tony lovez to poze for paper ; additionally . tony likez watching moviez together with sketch – they have a dedicated movie night once a week where they take turnz picking out what flick to watch ¥_^

★ COLIN – i VEHEMENTLY believe colin would ADORE SUPERHOT [the entire gameplay loop of repeating your actionz and retracing your stepz until you get it right iz something right up the alley of a computer – i can say that with certainty . az i too am a puter] ; hiz faverite muzic artist would be Oliver Buckland or Infinity Frequencies [both of theze artistz make very computer-y sounding trackz . sooo hehehe]

colin n tony love cooking together – big fanz of trying out new recipez whenever they have the free time !!! on top of that . i think they like to go for nightwalkz together – whether it would be in colinz digital world or in the real world !!!

tony iz a huge fan of theater in the first place . so he sometimez takez out sketch . colin and tracey to playz ; they can be incredibly fun since hez pretty good at filtering through what they might like and what they wouldn't

THATZ BASICALLY ALL I REALLY HAVE TO SAY RIGHT MEOW !!! ID LOVE TO DO A FOLLOW UP OR SOMETHING CUZ UUURGGH I LITERALLY LOVE TALKING ABOUT THEM !!!!!!

TYSM FOR THE AZK !!!!!! IT MEANZ EVERYTHING TO MEEE !!!!!!!!! I LOVE YAPPING ABOUT THEZE LITTLE FREAKZ OF NATURE !!!!!! HEHEHE X333

[somuchbetterthanthat]

Okay, screw it, have to ramble just for a second about my ideas for a Severance/Magnus Protocol AU because it all just fit so well it drives me a little insane.

Lena is obviously unsevered, and acts like she's incredibly loyal to the company, but it's possible that secretly she's trying to work against it in SOme capacity: or, at least, she grew genuinely attached enough to the severed employees that she wants to shield them from bigger threats. The Board does not know, right until Gwen B., who thinks Lena is doing a rather poor job, actually, finds dirt on her and the Board is Made Aware.

Gwen B., of course, has one obsession: work so well and do so well that she gets a higher position than the one she has right now; she has a very specific goal in mind, Lena's job, which leads her to discover dirt she didn't want to know. She's just CONVINCED she should do more than merely what she's doing right now. She feels weird in the Historical museum thingy. Sometimes it makes her want to cry and she Dislikes ThatTM

Now Gwendolyn Bouchard has Severed as a publicity OP for her family; she's the youngest of the family, don't look too closely at her parentage, her grandfather is not impressed by her and she wants to impress him so bad, and her father is too busy working on his Projects to really be here, so she's CRAVING any sort of recognization and yes, in fact, she does steadily grew more and more jealous of Gwen B., especially the day she catches footage of her and a Certain Alice kissing in bathrooms.

Alice D. has been on this job for years. She's fine with it. She's made it a little home. She's horribly sad when Teddy quits (/dies) cause to her her colleagues are basically family. Yes she even likes Gwen B., okay (she likes Gwen B. a lot, damn it). She's the big sister. She knows all the cool tricks of the severed floors. She does not ask questions which makes her Lena's secret favourite. Which also means she is the last to get into the ploy with Sam K. and Celia R. when those two crazy kids arrive and shake things up.

Sam K. has SOOO many questions. It's not so much that he wants to quit and more like he wants to know everything. Cause it's all kind of wild and insane, right? Like surely to do something like that they must be doing something INCREDIBLY IMPORTANT? There has to be a reason more than just stare at numbers and listen to spooky stories. Right? Right??? C'mon Alice. It's weird, isn't it?

(Outside, Samama Khalid severed out of desperation and meet back with his ex-girlfriend who did the same thing; it brings them back on the same path, they go back to drinking beers, they actually start remembering how much they loved each other - not that Alice Dyer ever truly forgot. Maybe, sitting on a couch together, they think: hey. we grew up. Maybe we could try again-- Course outside Sam is ALSO curious about Inside Sam. and Alice is like does it matter? and Sam is like, well, kinda, doesn't it? We should know more, shouldn't we, Alice? It all comes to shit when Teddy appears in their lives and tell them "you're not doing what you think you're doing down there")

Now you know who feels like she's living an extremely traumatic experience "again" and desperately wants to quit the second she's down there but is trying to be lowkey but also is full of fear??? Celia R.! Celia is like. Nope. No. No I don't like this at all, I HATE NOT REMEMBERING WHO AM I, this is wrong, this is terrifying, get me out of here (which, combined with sweet, eager, curious Sam K. means that those two build a whole plan to figure out how to get outside)

Celia Ripley, who's actual name may or may not be that, MAY OR MAY NOT be a spy who did this out of necessity. One Last Job to protect herself and her baby. So of course, when she receives the desperate plea of her innie to get her out, she feels bad, but she does tell her "suck it up. we need this."

What is Colin doing during this I don't know but he is probably running around fighting against the machines slowly taking control of the severed floors, probably. OR he's already been assimilated somewhat to the ControlsTM.

(Bonus point that is all me being a jonelias girlie, and specifically in this instance "Gwen is Jon and Elias's daughter") is: Jon had?? a mysterious?? accident?? and is now the Wellness Guy; Yes Elias pushed his own daugther to get severed and is studying how she's reacting every time his former husband and her meet up in Wellness. Gwen B. gets a hug from a father she barely remembers every Wednesday. By the way.)

[flanaganfilm]

Mike, can you tell us your experience premiering Oculus at tiff 2013? I recently saw Perri Nemiroff’s interview with you (looking like a baby btw- so young) and it made me think about what your mindset must have been as in getting yo experience the launch of your career, post Absentia, at one of the most prestigious festivals.

Oh, I remember that very well... a lot changed in a very short amount of time. And I think I know the interview you're talking about, I keep trying to link to it here but it doesn't take...

So there are few things to point out about Oculus and about what was happening in my life at the time. When Oculus got greenlit, I was working full time as a reality television editor. I used to sneak out of my job at lunch to go to "doctor's appointments" whenever I had to come for production meetings or casting sessions (they started to think there was something really, really wrong with my health).

Making the movie was an amazing learning experience - it was my first "real" movie, and full of lessons. It was the first collaboration with people who would become pillars of my career moving forward, like producer Trevor Macy (who is now my partner at Intrepid Pictures and who has produced everything I've ever made since) and my DP Michael Fimognari, who is one of the most important collaborators of my life. It was also the first time I worked with a young actress named Kate Siegel, who played the spooky ghost in the mirror.

We went into TIFF with distribution already in place. FilmDistrict had committed to the project during the Cannes market before we shot the movie, so we thought we were set. It was going to be my big theatrical debut.

Just before we premiered at TIFF, FilmDistrict abruptly and bafflingly dropped the film. I still don't really know why. They had committed to a worldwide theatrical release for the movie, but for reasons that were never made entirely clear to me, they dropped us just before the festival. Suddenly the whole enterprise was in jeopardy, and I didn't know if anyone would pick the movie back up.

I was absolutely terrified.

Being my first "real" movie, I didn't really know how this world worked and couldn't understand why our distributor didn't want to release it. We'd made the movie they had been excited about, they seemed to really like it, and we'd done everything they asked - it was a shock to the system. So when we rolled into tiff, we were homeless and trying not to let FilmDistrict's abrupt change of heart poison our chances of another sale.

I had never been to TIFF before but heard about Midnight Madness, which had seen huge sales from Cabin Fever and Insidious. Bidding wars had broken out while the films were still screening. But being part of the program was absolutely no guarantee of distribution - in fact, this might be the highest this movie would ever rise.

Trevor Macy and I went to the world premiere of The Green Inferno, which was playing the night before we played, and the audience was ROWDY. Like, shouting and hollering throughout the movie. We looked at each other with wide, nervous eyes - if this was the Midnight Madness audience, they were going to hate our movie the next day. We were considerably slower, ponderous, and atmospheric in a room that seemed to demand visceral, overt entertainment. I left the screening feeling dejected and a little doomed. Trevor was more upbeat, citing conversations he'd had with the programmer, Colin Geddes, who assured us he'd put our movie in the best possible spot for its success.

Our screening was September 9th, 2013 at midnight. I was petrified, and we were sold out. I remember walking into the theater feeling like this was the most important screening of my life. I wasn't alone, thank goodness. Trevor Macy, Michael Fimognari, Brenton Thwaites, Katee Sackhoff, Rory Cochrane, and James Lafferty were on hand. The film seemed to play well. It was the opposite of the screening the night before, which Colin had told us would happen - "watch," he had said. "The Saturday night slot is the big crazy one. You guys are Sunday, and it's going to be completely different. They'll plug right in."

He was right. You could hear a pin drop for most of the first half, and then there were moments of scattered applause that picked up as the film progressed. By the end, people were jumping in their seats and cheering for young Tim and Kaylee. There was an audible gasp when the anchor swung. And the applause at the credits seemed heartfelt and loud.

Most of that is a blur for me. I found this grainy pic from the Q&A after the film. I still had no idea how it had gone, or what was going to come out of it. I remember having hard time putting words together, and I vividly recall feeling like I sounded like an absolute moron whenever I talked, and trying to pass the microphone over to the actors as often as I could.

It's tough to see everyone in the pic, but from left to right it is Colin Geddes, Michael Fimognari, myself, Trevor Macy, Katee Sackhoff, Brenton Thwaites, Rory Cochrane, and James Lafferty.

When I stepped out of the theater, though, I became aware that everything had changed. I was immediately surrounded by people who had seen the film, suddenly shaking a ton of hands and realizing that it had been a hit. I walked into the theater by myself, utterly anonymous, and feeling every bit like an imposter. But everything was different when I walked out. I remember someone from the press talking about it years later, and saying "I was there that night - you walked into the theater with nothing, and walked out with a career."

People were asking me to sign stuff. That had never happened in my life. People wanted to get pictures. It was SO. FUCKING. WEIRD. Someone snapped a picture during that little whirlwind, and you can see it on my (young, skinny, hopelessly naive) face - an overall bewilderment, a gentle disbelief that this was happening:

I loved my experience at TIFF. And it absolutely started everything. Relativity, Blumhouse, and WWE Films joined forces to make an offer on the movie at the festival, and we left with a theatrical distribution deal. My career had officially begun. Now, I wouldn't feel like it had for several more years - I remained in fight/flight/survival mode well through Gerald's Game - but in retrospect, yes, that's when it happened.

Thank you for asking this question, it's been a while since I've looked back at this period of my life. It kinda makes me want to watch that movie again. It has been a LONG time, and I owe it a lot.

Maybe everything.